Tag: Credit Bureau

Everyone love to get advantage to save cash on their spending; sometimes advantage come in general as discounts and or promotional offers but most of the times it requires your knowledge and strategy to get benefit of savings on merchandise and services. If you are planning to get car financing and looking to save big on your next new or used car loan Canada, the most exhausting part of the process involved in buying a car, after settling on a price, is acquiring the right kind of loan for your vehicle. Most of the car consumers usually get excited in going after their favorite cars that make them enter the car dealership unprepared for the car loan application process, and that kind of behavior, lack of knowledge and planning have been costing these consumers millions of dollars every year.

Win-win situation is the best transaction that suits both, the car dealer and the buyer and if you want to create one; you should follow these 5 tips before sitting down for the negotiation: check your credit report, surf before buying car, go local, speak the language and be better prepared to negotiate.

1) Check your credit report

The very first step that always require you to get into any kind of financial transaction starts with your credit report; You will not find any personal finance advice, magazine or book that doesn’t refer to the importance of knowing what is on your credit report. Despite the fact that modern media has been beating us over the head with this advice for the past couple of decades, most people do not know their credit score or check their credit report on a regular basis. You can get a copy of your report by directly contacting the credit bureaus: Equifax and TransUnion.

Being unknown to your credit score and the other details of your credit report before applying for a car loan is a monumental mistake. You want to have any blemishes on your report resolved before you apply for a car loan, because the results of your lender’s credit inquiry directly impact your interest rate.

Get your credit report first; it will reflect your financial position. Your credit report includes: basic information about you – name, address, social security number, etc.; your late payments, any outstanding debts you have, the amount of credit available to you; any public records on you such as judgments and bankruptcies; and inquiries into your credit from potential employers or lenders.

And just because you have caught up late payments, cleared outstanding debts or cleared up any judgments does not mean these blemishes are automatically removed from your credit report. Sometimes, you need to follow up with the creditors to make sure they report your reconciliation of debt to all three credit bureaus.

In addition, identity theft and/or fraud can result in false, unfavorable records on your credit report. In January 2006, the Federal Trade Commission reported that more than 686,000 people reported identity theft and fraud complaints in 2005. Stolen identity and fraud can result in major credit report issues.

2) Better surf before buying car

You will be far less tempted to impulse buy, driving away from the car dealership with a car you can’t afford if you have established boundaries in your mind before you begin.

You can save big money on your car loan if you have a budget and type of car in mind before you go shopping. One easy way to accomplish this is to go online and check out different car dealership websites.

You can compare and contrast vehicle makes, models, styles, features and pricing.

3) Go local

There are many national auto websites, but did you know that many local car dealerships are now online as well? You can easily find online websites that offer Canadian car loan not even in provinces and territories but also cities where you reside; like you can get website that offers car loan Ontario and as well as car loan Toronto at the city level. The advantage of working with a local car dealership can outweigh working with the manufacturer or a national website when you want the best in quality customer service, a relationship for the lifetime of your car and the best deal on your auto loan.

The advantage of getting a loan through a local dealership is similar to the reason every town in America has a locally-owned restaurant that has regulars: local businesses have a sincere investment in the community. That interest often leads to better customer service, a more customized approach to selling, and the ability to get you a better loan than you will receive from a lender who doesn’t know – or care – who you are.

Lastly, the local dealership may have more than one location, increasing your options for finding the car you need but offering the same uniform auto financing options. So, if a customer goes to one car dealership and doesn’t find what they need, they can visit another location and expect the same quality customer service.

4) Speak the language

There’s nothing more frustrating than going through the entire car-buying process, thinking you have a good deal, and learning down the road that you were taken advantage of – simply because you had no idea what your sales rep was talking about, make sure you have an understanding of some of the basic industry terms that could be thrown at you during your transaction. With this knowledge, you won’t misunderstand the details or find yourself being signing a contract or paperwork that you don’t understand.

5) Be prepared to negotiate

If you’ve followed the four of the previous stated steps in this article, you will be armed with the necessary tools to negotiate the best rate possible for your car loan. There’s nothing wrong with shopping around and checking with other lenders to see what kind of rate they can offer you, but you must remember that numerous inquiries into your credit report may go against you.

And, when you go through the dealer for your auto loan, the sales rep wants a long-term relationship with you. This motivates them to work harder to get the best rate possible for you. In contrast, an online or off-site lender’s interests begin and end with the loan – but the car dealer wants you to: come back and have your car serviced, return when you want to purchase your next car, and tell your friends about them, further strengthening the dealership’s reputation in the community and increasing business.

Before you sit down to get your next car loan, take the time to do a little homework so that you can feel confident about securing the best deal for your auto financing. Investing a little time and effort before making the deal can go a long way in creating a win-win situation for you as a buyer and the car dealership. These 5 tips on how to save big on your car loan Canada are general steps to benefit personal finance that can work anywhere in the world.

Credit card companies in Canada charge certain fees for certain type of transactions like cash advance, balance transfer, late payment and other types of transactions. Likewise, they offer special features and incentives like travel accident insurance and others.

Fees To Be Paid

Under any circumstances, the following are charged by most Canadian credit card companies:

Annual fee: It’s paid for being a user of the card

Cash advance fee: It’s paid when the card is utilized for making a cash advance; usually a flat fee or a percentage of the amount advanced

Balance-transfer fee (BTF): It’s paid when a balance from another credit card is transferred to the other card. Checks are usually sent to pay-off the card. Balance transfer happens when the check is used to settle the amount due on the other card.

Return-item fee: Paid for returned checks when bill payments by check was done for insufficiency of funds (meaning, the check bounced)

Other fees and charges: Payments made for over the phone settlements, cost coverage for credit bureau reporting, account review, provision of other customer services. Other fees and charges are information which may be found on the credit card agreement.

Credit Limit

The credit limit is the maximum cost – for making purchases, cash advances, transferring balance, finance charges- which may be charged on the credit card. An over-the-credit-limit fee will be paid for exceeding the credit limit.

Features and Incentives

Incentives and special features are offered by many credit card companies for using the card :

Rebates money discounted on purchases

Regular flier miles or minutes for telephone-conversations

Additional warranty coverage for purchased items

Insurance for car rental

Insurance for accidents incurred while in travel

Credit card registration, in case wallet is lost or stolen and a report of missing credit cards had been made

For a certain amount, credit cards may also offer, Insurance coverage on credit card balance payments for card holders who become jobless or disabled or suddenly dies. Premiums are usually paid monthly, allowing payment cancellation if payments are more than what the desired payment amount is or if the insurance is no longer needed.

Credit card facts Canada highlights some of the important points that credit cards consumers usually look when applying for a credit card but you should always try to get updated information on your desired credit card application page and prior to availing of these special features, carefully decide whether these features are useful. Never pay for a feature which is not needed or is not useful.

Your credit report and score is the most important financial instrument that requires you to apply for the loan you are looking for. It also determines the interest rate credit lenders will be charging you, your highest score will awards you the most economical rate and your poor score results in even dismisal of your loan application.

The Department of Finance’s rule changes for high-ratio mortgages mean that a prospective borrower’s credit rating is more important than ever when it comes to qualifying for a mortgage loan when their down payment is less than 20% of the value of the property. Consumers need to be aware of how their credit is evaluated by lenders, and how they can work to avoid so-called bruised credit – people with a lower credit score can find themselves paying a higher interest rate, or even denied access to certain types of personal loans.

A credit report is a detailed history of how consistently you meet your financial obligations, and provides an impression of your financial health based on your credit history and past behaviour. A credit score is a three-digit number, usually between 300 and 900, representing your overall credit-worthiness, based on personal information from your credit report and other available sources.

Both your credit report and score are important. When deciding whether or not to grant a personal loan, credit card, mortgage loan and other lines of credit, lenders refer to an applicant’s credit report and score, along with a range of other factors such as income, employment history, business and size of down payment.

The higher your score the more likely you are to be approved for a personal loan including mortgage and receive favourable rates because the lender considers you to be a better credit risk. Several factors are used by the two available credit agencies in Canada, Equifax Canada and TransUnion Canada to calculate credit scores:

Debt payment history.

Amounts owed compared to your current credit limits with lenders.

How often you seek new credit.

Length of time you have had credit accounts.

Type of credit, such as car loans, business loans, student loans, lines of credit, credit cards.

Recent news from the financial industry over the past few weeks has highlighted the fact that for many borrowers nowadays, one’s credit rating is an even more important factor when it comes to accessing personal loan including mortgage credit. By taking a few basic precautions, consumers can protect their credit report and credit score, and increase their access to better rates and a better choice of loan products.

Here are a number of steps that you can take to keep your credit report and credit score healthy:

Pay off your debts on time – always meet due dates.

Don’t maximum out your credit cards – up to 50% of a card’s credit limit is favorable.

Borrow only the amount you can afford to repay.

Numerous inquiries for consumer-type credit in a short period of time can worsen your score – make out only necessary inquiries.

You can obtain a copy of your credit file free from Equifax Canada (1-800-465-7166) and Trans Union Canada (1-800-663-9980). However, these free credit reports will not contain a credit score and it’s a good idea to get both the reports. You can order more comprehensive reports including your credit score from these credit bureau companies, for a small fee.